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Ghana’s all-time top scorer, Asamoah Gyan, has likened Sadio Mane’s penalty miss for Senegal against Egypt at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations final to a similar experience he also encountered.
Sadio Mane recovered for a decisive penalty miss 5 minutes into the AFCON finale against Egypt on Sunday before stepping up during the penalty shoot-outs to send Senegal to their first AFCON title.
In a similar fashion, Gyan failed to score a decisive penalty on the cusp of full time against Uruguay at the 2010 World Cup quarterfinal which would have seen Ghana become the first African country to reach the World Cup semis.
The striker’s penalty kick struck the net but he later went ahead to score in the penalty shootout which the Black Stars lost.
Speaking on Super Sports, Asamoah Gyan stated that Mane’s situation was similar to his. According to him, the Senegalese were brave to overcome his setback.
“I have been there before. Mane missed a crucial penalty but had that courage to step up and score another one which won the trophy,” the former Sunderland player said.
Speaking after the game about how he recovered from the disappointment of missing an early penalty, Mane stated, “I was not happy. Most of the time I score the penalties. I think a big difference today is my teammates. After missing the penalty, everybody came to me in the dressing room, Sadio, just forget what happened, we lose together, and we win together."
“And when I was going to shoot the second penalty, they came to me, we trust you, go and do it, and that made the difference. It gave me more motivation and I shot and scored,” he stated.
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Ghana's all-time top scorer, Asamoah Gyan